Three Years Doctor
by lulat
Summary: Where did Sherlock go for the three years he disappeared? Maybe he met another life changing Doctor...Crossover inspired by a photoset which i fell in love with. I'm sure this has already been done but this is my version. Any feedback would be lovely!
1. Chapter 1

"Three years Doctor! And not one second more!" the man yelled to me as he strolled into the Tardis, with a swagger that I rarely saw in new companions. Time travel perplexed most humans, baffled them, amazed them. This man walked into the Tardis as if it were simply another building or as if it were indeed the phone box it had been disguised as. He pulled his long dark coat from his shoulders as he walked and threw it onto a nearby chair to reveal a tight shirt and smart trousers. He turned to face me and I saw his face alight with excitement. This was a challenge to him, a break from the tedious monotony of life and I, the Doctor, was the one to offer this.

Sherlock Holmes often complained about being bored. He wasn't bored now.

I found myself admiring the ease at which he strolled around the control room. Drinking in the sight of her, my sexy Tardis. He seemed to be savouring every moment, memorising every button and leaver. He probably was.

That may explain how he learnt how to fly her only a week later.

"I can't stay any longer than three years. There's another Doctor out there that needs me just as much as you do!"

"I don't need you!" I explained, "I'm fine by myself."

Sherlock gave me a condescending look.

"I may not be a Timelord but I can still read one. You're no different to any other person I've ever encountered. You surround yourself with danger and monsters as a way of distracting from the fact that you are alone. The last of your kind. You're racked with the guilt of being unable to save your people so you distract yourself by filling your life with humans in an attempt to save us from ourselves. It's simple psychology. Anyone could see that."

"And anyone could see that you feel guilty too." I called from the doorway.

Sherlock looked up at me, momentarily distracted from the controls.

"Well, you're human aren't you!" I explained. "Not quite as human as some but you still care. You're friend thinks you're dead and here you are running around with someone else. You're going to have adventures that John Watson can only dream of! Don't tell me that you haven't considered the fact that you're here and he's not. Don't tell me you're not worried about him."

Sherlock's pale skin flushed slightly at my words.

"Caring isn't an advantage. What I did was for John's own safety. That's all there is to it. I need to disappear off the radar for a while and this is the opportune way of doing so."

I realised I would have to get used to his bluntness, his harsh view of the universe. He was still young yet he seemed to have the understanding of someone much older. Like an old man in the body of a young one. I suppose that's what made him different to most of the humans I encountered. He called what he did "noticing" and "deducing" but it seemed like more than that. This ability he had to read the world like a child's book was unique...

I realised that Sherlock was now standing, watching me, and saw that now was the moment to impress him, to dazzle him. I walked forward and started adjusting the numbers and leavers on the control panel.

"Right! Where to first?" I exclaimed. "I can offer you all of time, space and every single challenge your brilliant mind could comprehend. There's so many mysteries to solve Sherlock Holmes and they are scattered across time, just waiting for someone like you to come and solve them! Oh and the universe is waiting for someone like me to dig these problems up! Oh yes! Me and you Sherlock! Me, you and the universe!"

I turned to his face which had broken into a grin that stretched across his strong cheekbones so it practically touched his curly dark hair.

"Where shall we start?"


	2. Chapter 2

"Where shall we start?"

That usually tended to be my opening line. My introduction to the life of never ending time and space. But, my time with Sherlock Holmes was never usual. Most humans were shocked, appalled, surprised and excited by the things I showed them. Sherlock seemed to observe it all, drink it all in, and accept whatever he saw as fact. Nothing fazed him, not even for a moment. He saw everything as if it were something new on earth not a brand new planet. It was interesting to watch him.

I questioned him about it once. It was after a short visit to one of the Moons of Taffom that I turned to him in the Tardis and asked;

"Does nothing surprise you?"

He looked up at me. "Once you've eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable must be the truth." He smiled. "I know that what I'm seeing is the truth despite its absurdity so why should I be surprised by it? It's interesting. It's not surprising."

Once you've eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable must be the truth.

He said that to me the first time we met.

I'd been running. Usually when I ran it was from aliens or monsters. This time I had been running from an overprotective Alsatian. At the moment we met I was leaning against the wall of an alleyway in the middle of London.

He appeared out of nowhere. I only saw the long coat at first and my instinctive reaction was to think of a certain Captain and his habit for flirting. However at second glance I realised this man was a stranger. A stranger who had me cornered in a dark alleyway.

"The Doctor I presume." He said, giving me a calculating look.

At that moment I panicked. Most of the time, strangers who knew who I was were either from my future or trying to kill me. I didn't often stay around to find out which.

However this stranger extended a pale hand for me to shake.

"I hear you've been irritating my older brother." He said with a half smile.

I shook his hand.

"Isn't that usually a bad thing?"

"Not in this case." He said and gave me a second glance up and down. "He says you're an alien. Well, I suppose that makes sense. Once you've eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable must be the truth. No person who's well acquainted with this century wears a bowtie."

I adjusted the offending item.

"Bowties are cool."

The man said nothing in response to this.

"Who is your brother?" I asked. "How does he know who I am?"

"He's the British government."

"Ah I see. Mycroft Holmes. And you are..."

"Sherlock. Sherlock Holmes."

"Why has he sent you? Earth does have other ways of contacting me..."

"No we don't. You simply turn up, as and when you can. Don't try to fool me with that."

I was shocked at that.

"How do you know these things? Mycroft doesn't seem the type to let information slip." I said accusingly.

"There are other ways of gaining information."

"Such as?"

"Observation."

"Oh I see. An Arthur Conan Doyle type deduction..."

"Except I'm not fantasy."

"So what's your brother irritated with me about?"

"He's not irritated with you."

"Oh! But you said he was."

"No, he's annoyed with whoever keeps intervening in the Redheaded League."

I smiled.

"But he doesn't realise it's you who's intervening. He thinks there's a more...human cause for what's been happening."

"Are you going to tell him?"

"And loose the enjoyment of watching him become more and more baffled by this case. Of course not!"

We stood in silence in the alleyway for a few seconds.

"Then why have you come to talk to me?"

"I just wanted to meet the man who's outsmarting my brother."

I laughed.

"You found me, just to see what sort of man I am."

"What's so strange about that?"

"It takes people lifetimes to find me. People travel galaxies and dimensions to try and find me and sometimes they never succeed. People who have vitally important messages and truths to reveal to me can't find me. And you simply stroll into this alleyway in London and find me just to say hello. I could have been anywhere in the universe!"

"But you were here. So I found you. Homeless network – it's a vital tool for anyone in my line of work."

"Which is?"

"Consulting detective."

I nodded. I was beginning to like Sherlock Holmes more and more.

"I need to be leaving." He said to me. "My flatmate will wonder where I am. I told him this was to do with a case but I can't be gone too long or he'll ask me about it."

He turned from the darkness of the alley towards the light of the streets of London. Then he turned back just as quickly.

"If I wanted to contact you Doctor, how would I reach you?" he asked.

"I have a phone." I said, handing over my number.

He gave it a quick glance.

"I'll text you." He said and turned to leave.

I stopped him just as he was about to walk out onto the street.

"And where would I be able to contact you, Sherlock Holmes?"

He turned his head and called to me as he walked out onto the street.

"The address is 221b Bakers Street!"

I would remember that.


	3. Chapter 3

I would remember that.

I remembered it the second time we met. I was once again running. However this time it was from a Sontaran soldier, who had managed to crash land in central London. He was a little confused as to why I was here, as according to his instruments I was now a sworn enemy of the Sontaran race. That may explain why he was chasing me down the dark streets at 3:00 in the morning.

I raced forwards, trying to duck in time to avoid the beam of his laser gun as I stumbled across the chewing gum strewn pavement. I rounded a corner and my eye caught the sign "Bakers Street" on a building to my right. I remembered Sherlock Holmes. Now was as good a time as any to call on him...

However I never got the chance to search the doors for 221b as at that moment my foot caught on a piece of broken pavement and I was thrown to the ground, hitting my head on someone's bins as I did so. I blinked hurriedly and attempted to get to my feet and continue running however as I tried to do so I looked up to find the Sontaran soldier pointing his gun at my nose.

"Stay where you are Doctor!" he called from behind his shapeless blue helmet. His gun was still pointed at me.

"Do you know the praise I would receive for bringing you home as a prisoner of war Doctor?" he said, he sounded excited.

"I'm sure it would be great!" I said, trying to think of a way out of this situation despite the pounding in my head and the gun pointed in my face.

"Yes. But I think the reward for bringing you home dead may be even greater!"

I flinched. I was afraid he would say that.

At that moment I was expecting my life to end, right there on earth in the streets of London in the middle of the night. However, to my surprise, I heard a loud smack and suddenly the soldier had dropped his gun and was lying unconscious on the floor at my feet.

I looked up to find Sherlock holding a brick from someone's garden wall which he had clearly just used to hit the Sontaran in the back of the neck.

"How did you know about the weak point at the back of the neck?" I asked, sitting up.

"Lucky guess." He said. I knew he was lying but at that moment I wasn't interested in trying to obtain the reasons why he knew. I was just grateful that he was here.

"Thank you for that."

"It was no problem." He said, putting the brick back down on the garden wall and holding out his hand to pull me to my feet.

I suppose I must have hit my head harder than I'd realised because my head started spinning as soon as I stood vertically and suddenly Sherlock was grabbing hold of my arm to keep me steady.

"Doctor?" he asked.

"I just hit my head. I'm fine." I said, although I gripped back onto his thin arm.

"My flatmate is a doctor if you-

"No, no need for a doctor. I'm alright. I just need to get back to my Tardis."

"Your Tardis?" he asked me, I could see the shadow of his eyebrow raising slightly.

"My spaceship. I parked her a few streets away."

"I'll walk you to it. Are you alright to walk by yourself?"

"I'm fine." I said, I let go of his arm and spiralled to the floor.

This time when Sherlock pulled me to his feet he was far more forceful. He kept hold of my arm as we began walking down the street together.

"What about that...creature?" Sherlock asked, glancing back the dark blue spacesuit.

"'I'm sure Torchwood are already onto it." I said, thinking about their many instruments they used to keep track of things such as this. We continued travelling down the street.

"So how have you been since we last spoke?" I asked.

"Fine. There's been one or two cases of interest and I've almost been killed a couple of times. You?"

"About the same sort of thing. Just on a more inter-galactic scale."

We walked in silence for a few metres.

"I don't suppose." Sherlock said after a while, "That on your travels you've come across a James Moriarty at all?"

I racked my fuzzy brain.

"No. Not on earth." Sherlock didn't respond. "Is there a reason?"

"I'm just...researching him. He and I have a special relationship."

"I see." I said, although I couldn't really see at this moment in time. I stumbled slightly as I walked and the consulting detective tightened his grip.

"Are you sure about seeing a doctor?" he asked.

"Your friend wouldn't understand me anyway. Timelord biology is slightly different."

"Yes, two hearts isn't it?"

"How can you know that?"

"Your pulse is – interesting."

I hadn't even realised that the way Sherlock had been holding my arm was perfectly angled to measure the pulse on my wrist as we walked. I suppose he was practiced at doing it unnoticed.

"Who is your flatmate?" I asked, "You mentioned him last time we met as well."

"John Watson. He's an army doctor. He works on my cases with me."

I wondered what sort of man John Watson was to be a friend to Sherlock Holmes. He must have nerves of steel to keep up with him.

"You two must be close." I said.

"We are I suppose. Our relationship is...different to most other relationships I've had."

"Oh, are you two dating?" I asked. I was surprised. Sherlock didn't seem to be the dating type.

"No, no just friends."

We walked along in silence before I realised we had reached the park where the Tardis was. I steered Sherlock towards her.

"Is this it?" he asked. "Your spaceship." He sounded interested as he examined the blue Police box. There was a flicker of excitement in his voice which he couldn't control. An innate enthrallment with something which he hadn't encountered before.

I couldn't resist seeing his reaction.

"Want to take a look inside?" I asked and clicked my fingers, watching the blue wooden doors open.

He helped me through and looked around him. I could see his eyes drinking in the size, the shape, the console filled with levers and buttons he had never encountered. A smile appeared on his lips as he ran his fingers along the cool metal of a nearby bar. I waited for the obvious response. "It's bigger on the inside!"

It didn't come. Instead he simply asked;

"Why is it called the Tardis?"

"It's Time And Relative Dimension In Space. It can travel across the whole of time and space."

"How?"

"It travels through the Time Vortex." I said simply.

"No, I meant how do the mechanics of it work?" he asked.

"I'm not sure you'd understand."

"You mean you don't know yourself."

"I haven't a clue!" I smiled.

Sherlock laughed. "It was good to speak to you again Doctor." He said, "It's difficult to find a stimulating conversation with someone which isn't so...trivial."

"Thank you again for helping me." I said, "I owe you Sherlock."

For a moment I thought I imagined it. But he flinched at those words. I owe you. For a moment his face seemed to fall slightly.

But he recovered just as quickly.

"I'll be sure to cash in the favour." He said and walked out the doors of the Tardis into the night.

As I stood by myself in the control room and began starting up the engines I couldn't help but think as to why those three words would bother Sherlock Holmes.

I owe you.


	4. Chapter 4

I owe you.

That's what I said and it was only a few weeks later that I was called on to return the favour. Sherlock saved my life so now it was my turn to save his.

I heard the phone ring whilst I was trying unsuccessfully to alter the brakes on the Tardis. I had my sonic screwdriver in my hand as I answered the phone.

"Hello, the Doctor speaking!"

"Hello Doctor, it's Sherlock."

He didn't need to clarify this. I recognised his voice instantly. As soon as he spoke I knew that he needed my help. There was an unconscious tone to his voice which suggested he was in danger and immediately all thoughts besides his safety left my mind.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"I need to call on that I.O.U you promised me." He said breathlessly.

"What do you need?"

"I need you to help me disappear."

I was surprised.

"Can't you do that on earth?"

"No, nowhere is safe. I'm phoning you from a phone box a couple of streets from my flat. I have a feeling my flats been bugged."

"Is this Moriarty?" I asked, remembering our last conversation.

"Yes." He said simply.

"How powerful is this man that you need to leave the planet?"

"He's one of the most powerful men in the world. He's a consulting criminal, above the law yet pulling at all the strings of the most dangerous crimes."

"And he's after you?"

"Yes, apparently I'm in his way." Sherlock almost seemed to be laughing at this.

"How long do you need to disappear for?"

"Three years I should think. No longer or else I won't be able to return. I just need to convince him that he's gotten rid of me for a few years. I can sort out how to do that here on earth but I need somewhere to go."

"And you thought of me?"

"I figured now was the perfect time to call on you. Can you think of somewhere to take me?"

I thought for a few moments.

Even now I can't explain why I did this. The idea simply came to me and was out of my mouth before I'd registered it. But, I don't regret it.

"You could travel with me." I said.

There was a moment of silence.

"With you?"

"Yes, if you'd like. You, me and the Tardis. We could travel across the universe together. Would you'd be interested in that?"

"I-I would." He said, he seemed taken aback. "You'd want me to?"

"Of course!" I said and smiled at his shock.

I could hear his smile from the end of the telephone.

"I'd love to." He said.

"In that case, when the time comes, call me and I'll be there."

"Thank you." He said and the line went dead.

It was only a few days before he rung me again.

"Doctor it's time." He said.

"Where do you want to meet me?"

"St James churchyard."

"I'm coming." I said.

I materialised a few metres away from him. He was standing under the shadow a large tree, his coat collar upturned against the wind. He was watching the retreating back of a man with a distinct limp. When I stood next to him he made no sign to show he's noticed my presence.

"Your friend?" I asked, gesturing towards the man who was stumbling towards another older woman.

"Yes." He said quietly. "His limp's back." He added, almost to himself.

"Are you alright?"

"Yes." He said curtly and I dropped the subject. He turned and faced the Tardis, which could be seen from the distance.

"You sure about this?" I asked.

"Certain."

"Let's go then!" I said. And together we walked towards the blue box.

Sherlock never really talked about what happened when he left earth. He'd become very quiet if ever the topic was brought up. Our first few minutes in the Tardis were the only time the subject was talked about in some sort of detail. The next time we discussed it was a few days before he returned.

It was almost three whole years later...


	5. Chapter 5

It was almost three whole years later...

Sherlock Holmes had changed very little in those years. He was still just as thin, intelligent and unsociable as he had been when he first entered the Tardis. We'd travelled this galaxy and the next and the next and now we were sitting in the control room of the Tardis sharing a cup of tea as though we were simply in a little cafe on earth. At that moment in time we were hovering above a constellation of stars in the Guy Nebula, the doors of the Tardis wide open so we could watch the glare of the burning lights.

"How long have I been travelling with you Doctor?" Sherlock asked.

"It's been almost three years, if that's what you were wondering."

"It doesn't feel like we've been travelling for that long."

"It never does. It's only when you look back at yourself that you realise how different you really are, and you realise how long it's really been." I said, stirring my tea with a spoon.

Sherlock looked thoughtful for a moment.

"I don't feel that different."

"That's because you haven't been travelling as long as I have."

We sipped our tea in compatible silence.

"I suppose I have to go back to earth."

"You don't have to if you don't want to."

"But, I do, John...he needs me..."

It was the first time he'd mentioned his name is months. Sherlock seemed to realise this too as his face looked confused for a moment as he tried to make sense of the name on his tongue.

"John...John needs me to come back."

"And you need him too."

To my surprise, Sherlock did something I couldn't predict.

"Yes, of course I need him."

He admitted it.

"Me and John, we're a team Doctor. So I do need him."

He was quiet for a moment.

"He won't have been waiting for me. He thinks I died from that fall."

"Oh, I don't think he'll have believed that for a second. Not if he's not as loyal as you make him out to be." I said.

Sherlock smiled.

"I can't wait to see his face when he finds out I'm not dead." He said.

"Oh, well it's not that great!" I said, "Especially when their daughter who's also your wife has already told them that you're alive. Then it just gets a little frosty..."

I found myself remembering her, standing in her doorway, in the snow, with that unamused look on her face. It had been a long time since I'd last visited her and Rory. Maybe now was the time. After I dropped of Sherlock it would just be me again. And I can't face being alone again. Not now.

I realised that Sherlock was staring at me, and noticed that my cheek was wet and I hurriedly brushed away the moisture. Too humany wumany Timelord...

"We've still got a little more time." I said and closed the doors to the Tardis and walked towards the controls.

"It's not quite three years so I think we can still fit in one last adventure before you leave." I said and smiled at him.

"Excellent." He said, returning the smile.

"Come on Sherlock, let's take one last trip together!"


	6. Chapter 6

"Come on Sherlock, let's take one last trip together."

It was strange to realise that it was the last time. We tried to act as though it was just a visit to another planet like any other but underneath it all we were a little sad. It was the end.

We'd had three whole years together but Sherlock needed to move on. He couldn't stay travelling with me forever. No one ever can.

I materialised on Bakers Street and we stepped out into the street. Nothing much had changed in the last three years. It was still the same old London.

"Will John be home?"

"Maybe." Sherlock said.

We stared from across the road at 221b.

"What are you going to say to him?"

"I'm not really sure yet." He said. "I've not had to do this before."

"Well I've done it a few times but unfortunately that doesn't make me an expert." I said and attempted a small laugh. Sherlock turned sideways to look at me.

"Thank you." He said simply, "For everything. I've-

He froze. I could see his calculating mind trying to figure out what to say.

"I know." I said. "Don't try and say anything. I know you're not too good with this sort of thing!"

Sherlock smiled. "Sentiment!"he scoffed. He extended one pale hand and shook mine, just as he did on our first meeting.

"Goodbye Doctor."

I nodded and watched him cross the street to his flat. But, I found myself turning away and walking into the Tardis instead of seeing the door to 221b open. As Sherlock had explained, there was another doctor in his life and I didn't want to intrude.

I closed the door behind me and stared at the vast expanse of my Tardis, my beautiful Tardis. It felt strange to realise that there would be no more science experiments, no more bullets in my control panel. I'd have to explain things to a new person which Sherlock simply understood. That would take some getting used to.

Knock-Knock-Knock-Knock!

I jumped. Someone was knocking on the door of the Tardis. I flew towards the door and opened it to find Sherlock standing there.

"I-I forgot to give you back your key." He said, holding it out. I took it from his hand, then sighed and put it back.

"You keep it!" I said, "Just in case you decide to come back."

Sherlock smiled. "I'd love to come back." He said.

"Really?"

"I will come back. And if I ever need some help with a case-

"You never need help with a case!"

"True." He said and the grin on his face widened.

We stood looking at each other before Sherlock closed his hand around the key.

"I'll keep it safe." He said and turned away.

I smiled, closed the door and leant against it. There was still so much to see, so much to do. It was time to move on, to move forwards.

To move onwards.


End file.
